


Found Dog

by Kiseragi



Category: Deadpool (Movieverse), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: AU, Canon X OC - Freeform, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-06
Updated: 2019-08-05
Packaged: 2020-08-10 05:00:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20129737
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiseragi/pseuds/Kiseragi
Summary: Balea Parez is an unfortunate soul. Their luck takes a turn for the worse when one day, they're tasked to scare the X-men from their gang's territory.





	1. Preface

//ahem

Consider this: the preface!

I have to do a lot of context explaining here, some rules and all that. 

Context: This is an AU I have with my original character, Balea Parez, an alien! I'll post their character sheet in the 'next chapter,' but to put it in short, in their past, they were in a street gang called 'Stray Kids' because of their fucky home life. In their actual story, they do end up with Colossus and they both end up defeating the group.

This AU is focused on a few things:

1\. A younger Colossus  
2\. If Colossus met Balea while living in the X-Mansion and they ended up growing together as heroes.

And it didn't feel right not including Wade??? Because Wade in canon is something of their mentor. They're his sidekick. But here he's pre-disfigured.

I'll post the OC sheets very soon before we get into the actual meat and content to the story. But other than that, most everyone is kinda younger here. I'm going based off of movies canon for the most part, so when I say Wade is here, I'm thinking of X-Men Origins: Wolverine and stuff.

The focus is mainly on the 'antagonist' though. I'm also leaving out bits of Balea's canon background because that'd be giving too much away uwu

Thank you!


	2. Balea Parez

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Character sheet for Balea Parez; the only information to be found here is information relevant to the story. Also note: I did not make this template.

Name: Balea McComrick

Nickname(s): Lyra; Bal; B; P

Age: 15-16

Gender: Nonbinary (AFAB)

Birthday: February 26th

Race: Lunafaust/Subflaust

Species: Lunathymarian

Accent: American, slightly southern

Height: 5’2”

Weight: 140 lbs

**OC's Appearance**

Skin Color(s):  **(human) ** Olive/orangey skin  **(transformed (luna)) ** black with white spots  **(transformed (sub)) ** white with black spots

Hair:  **(human) ** Dark brown with light silver and blue ends, short cut  **(transformed (luna)) ** white  **(transformed (sub)) ** black

Hairstyles: Wavy bob

Eye Color(s): **(human) **dark brown **(transformed (luna)) **black sclera, white irises **(transformed (sub))** black sclera, white irises; almond shaped

Unique Feature(s): Frequently seen with bandages on the face and arms; slightly muscular

**OC's Clothing Style**

Gym: black sports bra; gym shorts; black fingerless gloves

Fancy: black slacks, black vest, white collared button up, red bowtie

Pajamas: blue and white striped briefs, white wife beater.

Normal: Cream-colored pea-coat, black tank top, black jeans, black doc martins

Underclothes: Black sports bra, wine-colored boy-shorts

Accessories: Black muzzle

**OC's Personality**

Social: Extremely cold and distant for the most part; eventually warms up and comes off as a bit childish

Bravery: Puts on a bravery 'facade.' Is actually a bit of a coward.

Rebellious: Their entire job surrounds the idea of rebellion

Tidy: They're in charge of cleaning a lot, so they tend to be tidier than most.

Daredevil: Extremely free-spirited; they aren't afraid of taking action.

Bookworm: Enjoys reading, especially comics and fiction

Personality:

A complicated soul, Balea has a huge disdain for society. After being beaten, broken and bruised, they're wary of new people and more importantly, wary of being hurt again. Despite being as cold as they are, if you manage to get close, you'll find they're quite imaginative and a bit of a space-case. Extremely smart and analytical, they're a perfect right hand.

**OC's Likes/Dislikes**

Favorite Food: sushi

Favorite Drink: Energy drinks; bubble tea

Favorite Movies: Horror and action

Favorite Music: They love all kinds of music, but they like rock the most

Favorite Tv Show: true-crime related things (criminal minds, that kind of stuff); anything animated

Favorite Book: Helter-skelter

Favorite Holiday: Halloween

Favorite Season: Winter

Favorite Place: The park

Favorite Color: Red

Least Favorite Food: Anything that tastes like shrimp

Least Favorite Drink: beer

Least Favorite Movies: Anything with barely any plot

Least Favorite Music: Country-- but even then there are some songs they like

Least Favorite Tv Show: Most reality shows (though, they binge them since it’s ‘visual junk food.’)

Least Favorite Book: Fight club

Least Favorite Holiday: valentine’s day

Least Favorite Season: Spring

Least Favorite Place: McCommrick's Quarters

Least Favorite Color: Neon brown (seriously, what the fuck--)

**OC's Habits**

Overeating: Rarely

Smoking: Only the drugs Tracks provides to them

Spending Money: If they have ‘too much’ money, they’ll become neurotic 

Gossiping: They love listening to it, they hate being a mediator.

Lying: ** Oh buddy--**

Drinking: Frequently

Cheating: Only when they deem it okay (but never relationship-wise)

**OC's Personal Life**

Occupation/Job: Student; drug-dealer

Education: High school junior

Family:

  * Jamison McComrick (former guardian; deceased)
  * Kazuhiro Yamaguchi (paternal figure; deceased)
  * Bethro Major (Father)
  * Elise Major (mother)

History:

There was a luna-sub race war. Their father didn't want them to be killed, and so they were sent to earth in a ship as a baby since chimera lunathymarians were illegal. They landed fairly close to an orphanage and lived their days out before being sent off to a mutant orphanage via a misunderstanding. At 7, they were adopted by Father Jamison McComrick as "Rosita." Though, it was less to have a daughter and more to have a "malleable perfect being." As a consequence, he abused her for years, locking her in basements, forcing her to study, and never letting her see the outside world. On one hand, they ended up a genius. But on the other hand, she had no idea how the world worked.

Once they turned 12 they began to rebel, sneaking outside. When she wasn’t allowed to eat, she would steal lots and lots of food. At 14, while stealing from a small corner store, she met Yamaguchi, a former pianist from Japan who became blind in an accident. She ended up working for him and becoming closer, and in turn, he adopted her. However, unfortunately, McComrick finds her again and ends up taking her. She begins to sneak back outside and saves her money to buy Yamaguchi stark-industry brand shades meant to help the blind see. In trade, Yamaguchi teaches her to play piano and subsequently plays her his most famous song, “The Butterfly Sonata.”

He then, after seeing the extent of her abuse, promises to adopt her from McComrick. The night he tried to steal her away though, he was shot by McComrick, and McComrick takes Rose in an attempt to leave for Canada. After nearly molesting her in the car though, she snaps and using her telekinesis, drives the car over a bridge and drowns, resetting her personality.

After being interrogated, she was put in a mutant orphanage home. Not having much to live for and focusing on her education, she attended school faithfully with no friends and no social life. At this point, she’d get harassed and bullied for being ‘too quiet’ and ‘ghostly.’ One day, she fought back and ends up earning the respect of Trevor “Tracks” Skye. Tracks ended up telling her about the gang of the area and pressures her to join.

Now becoming more comfortable with their gender, they're under Tracks' thumb and live in silent fear, doing his bidding for him.

Obsessions:

As a result of being held captive, they have a never-ending passion for music. A big cope for them is binging and reading fantasy books, especially ones where the protagonist saves themselves. 

Fears:

  * Artemis
  * They have a natural distrust for older humans (usually appearing over the age of 50)

**OC's Abilities**

Power/Skills:

  * Powers
    * Sonic scream
    * Traveling among sound waves
    * Force manipulation (able to manipulate the nature of things. When they don't use it it works against them)
    * Flight
    * Regeneration (depending on how much they eat, that's the amount of time it takes for them to regenerate a wound-- the longest being 30 seconds. If mortally wounded, they'll be knocked out for 30 minutes and their personality is altered.)
    * Metal-based telekinesis

Strengths:

  * Handy
  * Good memory
  * Good with strategy
  * Quick thinker
  * Optimistic
  * Extremely determined

Weaknesses:

  * Low strength
  * Power level cut in half when in human more
  * They can only use their full power when happy
  * Soundproof rooms
  * Sore throats
  * When angry, they blackout, and Artemis takes control.

Equipment: extendable rod, low supply of gold and epmed, guns (semi-auto), guitar

Note: Artemis is their alter-ego so to speak. Since they're a chimera, they share a body with what would've been their twin. Artemis is much more aggressive and much more visually based. They no longer have access to Balea's powers, as they have their own. Their manipulation powers go from metal to light-based, and the only way to officially kill or weaken them is to blind them somehow as their powers are more so based on the concept of vision. They're more masculine and aggressive than Balea.


	3. Trevor "Tracks" Skye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trevor "Tracks" Skye

Name: Trevor Skye

Nickname(s): Tracks

Age: 20

Gender: Male

Birthday: October 30th

Race: White

Species: Mutant

Accent: Northern-american

Height: 6’3”

Weight: 200 lbs

**OC's Appearance**

Skin Color(s): Pale white; porcelain

Hair: Dark grey-chocolate

Hairstyles: Wavy long hair

Eye Color(s): Bright violet; round-shaped

Unique Feature(s): Always seen with a face mask and tank on his back; dark circles under his eyes

**OC's Clothing Style**

Fancy: black slacks, white blouse

Pajamas: gray wife-beater, black basketball shorts

Normal: Black puff pants, dark grey long button-up (almost dress-like), black doc martins, black pea-coat

Underclothes: black briefs

Accessories: Black half mask; green air tank strapped to his back with backpack straps

**OC's Personality**

Social: Very sociable, somewhat formal upon first meeting him but gradually becomes more transparent and more foul-mouthed

Bravery: fearless

Rebellious: He absolutely hates the law and will do anything to reject the law

Tidy: Surprisingly tidy, but still somewhat messy

Daredevil: Lives on the edge constantly

Bookworm: He enjoys reading in his free time sometimes

Personality:

He’s, for the most part, manipulative and dangerous as a person. He's extremely selfish on the account of having not grown up with much. He sees other people as pawns, and his ultimate goal is simply to live up on top. He's a trickster and enjoys it when others are suffering, specifically when he causes it. He does have a soft spot for some things though.

**OC's Likes/Dislikes**

Favorite Food: Mochi

Favorite Drink: coors

Favorite Movies: Horror

Favorite Music: Underground rap; metal

Favorite Tv Show: He doesn’t watch TV

Favorite Book: He likes history

Favorite Holiday: Christmas

Favorite Season: Winter

Favorite Place: Underground (night club)

Favorite Color: Black

Least Favorite Food: Eggs

Least Favorite Drink: Sangria 

Least Favorite Movies: Rom-com

Least Favorite Music: Dub-step

Least Favorite Tv Show: Anything related to magical girls

Least Favorite Book: He hates fantasy

Least Favorite Holiday: valentine’s day

Least Favorite Season: Summer

Least Favorite Place: His old orphanage

Least Favorite Color: Red

**OC's Habits**

Overeating: Never

Smoking: He quite literally has to do it to live

Spending Money: He’s actually quite frugal but tends to splurge on stupid things from time to time

Gossiping: He uses it as a way to get information, but nothing more.

Lying: Always

Drinking: Frequently

Cheating: By any means necessary-- even if it means hurting others

**OC's Personal Life**

Occupation/Job: Drug dealer

Education: High school

Crush:

  * Balea

Enemies:

  * Artemis
  * Balea
  * X-men
  * X-force

History:

The history behind how Tracks came to power is a bit foggy. But it is known he was once a little fish and gradually moved up in ranks until eventually, the Stray Kids liked him better than they did their Underpin at the time, and so together they overthrew him with the blessing of their Kingpin.

Obsessions:

He has a thing for chemistry and is a bit obsessed with immortality and riches. Because he can't live without the inhalation of his 'medicine,' he's always trying to find new strands to live on.

Fears:

  * Never getting Balea back

**OC's Abilities**

Power/Skills:

  * Powers
    * Toxic touch
    * Hypnotism
    * Super strength
    * Super speed

Strengths:

  * Analytical
  * Good at reading people
  * Good with negotiation
  * Fast at drawing
  * Good at intimidating

Weaknesses:

  * Drug addicted
  * If he's not inhaling gold at any point, he has 30 minutes to find a source or he'll die.
  * Quick to anger
  * Unpredictable
  * He tends to wing everything, and so he's not good at planning.

Equipment: Mutant stun-gun; bat; extendable rod; various semi-auto guns; high quantity of drugs

Alias: Villain


	4. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Balea is sent out to get rid of the X-men. It goes horribly, horribly wrong.

“So, we heard some time today that the X-men have been… in short, becoming concerned with the mutants going missing over here.” Tracks took a long in half on his lower half mask, surrounded by at least two other girls.

Balea tried to pretend it didn’t hurt a bit.

They stood in front of him. When they were ‘working’ they were supposed to pretend they weren’t together since relationships weren’t a  _ good  _ thing around these parts. They were a weakness to be exploited.

“So, Wild Dog,” He leaned forward, violet eyes looking into her dead brown ones. “Go scope out the area. Threaten ‘em good. If it escalates, kill them. The X-Men will not impede on Stray Kids territory.” He growled.

“Yes sir.” They said coldly. They were already pulling on their ‘muzzle.’ They turned to exit, pills in their pocket in case they had to fight. They floated to the top of one building, albeit very slowly on the count of being human at the moment. They strolled on the rooftops before building hopping, floating between leaps gracefully, their absurdly long pea-coat almost like a dress.

The snow crunched under their feet as they looked around. Sure enough, they caught wind of three people!

Granted two of them had the little red X’s on their suit and one with a big, bright yellow X on their shirt. One was a man with a grizzly appearance. Balea couldn’t decide if he was more a wolf or a bear with muttonchops like that! Then there was another man. Dashingly handsome, but clearly annoying the other one. Dirty blonde hair and katanas on his back. This should be easy-- not even samurai really used those according to the history books they read.

There was an extremely tall lad with… beautiful blue eyes and messy black hair in the yellow shirt. He was  _ ripped.  _ Pleasing to the eye. But, if their calculations were right, the yellow meant he was a trainee. 

And they were normally right.

They dashed around, mostly to catch their attention as a warning. The grizzly one had blades crawl from his fists. “You guys hear that?” He asked.

“No, I thought it was the sound of you, slicing sausages with those knives of yours.” The dirty blonde rolled his eyes, unsheathing his katanas. That’s when they dashed out, knocking the tallest one to the ground. Foot on his upper chest, he was stunned. They pulled a gun and pointed it to his face before pointing another at them.

“If you value his life, you’ll turn back now.” Their voice was low, bitter and angry.

“Ow! The edge! Come on kid, give us back our boy wonder and we’ll make sure he doesn’t pummel you into a nice salsa.” The dirty blonde relaxed, upon seeing it was a rather short person.

The gun clicked.

“I asked nicely. Now I gotta make an example.”

They pulled the trigger, only for the bullet to deflect-- wait did they just get taller?

The boy took their leg and swung them across the way. They flipped, landing on all fours.

The three of them lined up to face them.

“What’s that muzzle for? I didn’t realize the freak show was in town.” The grizzled one grumbled.

“ _ It’s cause my bite is worse than my bark. _ ” They slipped a pill through the crack of the muzzle before their skin paled into a bright, glowing white. A reverse of white skin and black stars. Their eyes stared into them.

“I don’t like how she’s looking at us…” The metal boy finally spoke as he frowned.

“Yeah? Neither do I, big guy.” The grizzled one frowned.

“Are we gonna stand here or is this now a magic show now?” The dirty blonde was growing irritated, relaxing his pose again.

“It’s a magic show. And I’m about to make you all disappear.” They launched forward, hand around the dirty blonde’s throat before throwing him just as they’d been thrown. This time though, they flipped, their heel connecting to his face. They turned just in time to catch the grizzled one swiping at their head. They charged into him as they dodged, knocking him back.

They pulled out a knife, cutting him. And yet it healed right back up.

“Regeneration huh?” They muttered. “Ditto.”

He swiped as they floated back. In their dodging though, they didn’t see the truck of a man running towards them. The metal man wrapped his arms around them, crushing the life out of them. Their breath escaped them, their eyes on the sky. Their back popping, their bones and the like being crushed.

“Let her go. Let her talk.” The grizzled one looked up at him. The metal boy looked unsure, but did as told.

Balea coughed, sputtering. “Fuck--” They scrambled on the ground. The three of them surrounded them, armed.

“Who sent you?” The boy’s accent was thick.

“Slow down there, Vladmir Putin.” The dirty blonde raised a hand. “She’s gotta catch her breath first.”   
  


“They--” They gasped.

“They gotta catch their breath first.” He corrected himself. Maybe these guys weren’t all bad.

“.... I’m Wild Dog.” They started. “And you’re impeding on Stray Kid territory.” They slowly got up, wobbling a bit.

“Stray Kid? What the hell is that?” the grizzly one spoke up.  ** _Oh shit._ **

“You mean to tell me-- ghk-- you didn’t even know what you were doing???” They wheezed.

“All we knew that mutants keep disappearing left and right in this specific block radius. Unless you’ve been pulling your ‘disappearing’ act on all of them, there’s something fishy going on.” The grizzly one frowned.

“Right-- right….” How would they lie themselves out of this one? They didn’t see a point to it. They suddenly remembered everything they’d done for the Stray Kids. Yes, they were given a roof, and clothes, and food… but in turn, they’d done a lot of dirty deeds in return.

“If I tell you this stuff, you gotta promise not to come back.” They said.

“Yeah sure, when my ex calls back.” The dirty blonde rolled his eyes. “You say that as if we’re gonna listen.” He chuckled.

“... I guess if you wanna kill the informant, sure.” They said suddenly. That changed the tune.

“What do you mean kill?” The Russian boy spoke up in concern. 

“My boy-- boss. My boss won’t like it if he sees you guys again. My job was to take you out, or at least drive you out. If I come back and you guys are still kicking it… there’s no telling what’ll happen to me. So in trade for this information, you stay the fuck away from here.” They pointed, rubbing their neck.

The three of them looked at each other.

“... give us a second.” They stepped back away from them, whispering among each other. Balea meanwhile began to mess with random scrap metal laying around, just flipping them and molding them before they came back to them. 

“Right, so, we’ll keep away. What is it you know?” The scruffy one asked.

“Names first. Then I’ll tell you.” They said.

“Wolverine.” The scruffy one said.

“Your  _ real  _ names.” They said again.

“Your mom named you ‘Wild Dog?’ You poor, unfortunate bastard.” The dirty blonde shook his head, folding his arms. “Hey, you must’ve been  _ quite  _ the looker when you were born--”

“Wade.” The scruffy one cut him off. So his name was Wade huh?

“.... My name is Balea McComrick.” They said.

“Logan.” The scruffy one corrected himself.

“... Piotr.” It took the Russian a second. He must be  _ really  _ new.

“Right, so… where do I start?” “How about where those mutants ended?” Logan suggested.

“Fair. They all had one thing in common-- they owed it to our king pin.” Balea explained.

“King pin?” “This part of New York is split into four major parts, all ran by one big gang of mutants: Von Wicke. There’s Underwater, that’s the loan sharks. They’re in the east. In the north is the Blood Wolves. They deal with threatening people and… making them… ‘disappear.’ The west has us, the Stray Kids. We’re in charge of the drugs. We get ‘em hooked, we get ‘em in debt, and then they… also disappear. Finally, the South has the Ormedus. Those guys are in charge of weapons. The best stuff from around the globe. In the end, we’re all apart of Von Wicke. But no one has seen the king pin himself.” They drew a little map in the sand, pointed out the little areas. They all paid attention carefully.

“Why’s it split up like that?” Logan asked.

“No one really knows. Only one who knows is the king pin.” They responded.

“Who is the king pin?” Wade asked.

“.... I only know him by Dilla.” They looked anxious just saying his name.

“You kids and your monickers.” Logan sighed.

“Look, no small fish knows his  _ real name.  _ We all use monickers and fake names when we get caught by cops. We switch it up every week, so if we get caught, we ask for, say, Jane Doe in the ‘Manhattan Cell Block.’ So no real record is drawn up.” They explained. “You mind if I used that--” “Wade.” “What!? That’s fucking genius!”

“Anyway, this idiot to the side, those mutants have been disappearing because…” “They’ve been short on payment. We don’t make your average shit. No cocaine or meth. We do something strong, hard and purposefully addicting.” They said. “We got epmed, which is an upper. There’s killa, a downer, and finally gold, an enhancer. They’re all specifically made for mutants, by mutants. And they’re all addicting. We only use the nonaddictive strands on our personal downtime, unless it's to keep people under our thumb.”

“And so once they run short on cash--” “We kill ‘em. Simple as that.” They stood now from their crouched position on the ground. They all stood with them.

“So in other words, if we wanna stop all this--” “Stop right there.” They immediately held a finger to Logan.

“You don’t stop Von Wicke. Von Wicke stops you.” Balea said. “It’s why we’re so big. We control the entire state of New York’s black market for mutants. You fuck with one of us? Word gets around? You’ll be dead before dawn. If you try to lay a paw on Dilla, if anyone even hears you’re trying to come for him? They will send someone out for you. It’s happened many a time before. You are not the first. You will not be the last.” They said sternly.

“Oooo, mini-me’s mad!” Wade smirked. “Sorry there, baby, buuuuut we kinda gotta do the good guy thing and save all the mutants! Which is why…

You’re coming with us.”

“Pardon?” 

Before they could even blink, the metal boy swung on them. They felt their jaw crack as they hit the ground. The boy looked so remorseful as he powered down. “I’m so sorry,” he frowned. “But it had to be done…”

The sky was suddenly black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SKSKSKSKS finally done giving info.
> 
> Anyway, that being said, we're still rolling with the creative notes being down here.
> 
> I was inspired to post this because a friend was encouraging me! They've been loving the story so far, so they urged me to post!! I was nervous at first but... eh, who cares.
> 
> I don't have much to note here. Except... I am nervous about getting the characterization right, as I haven't seen an X-men movie since I was 11 admittedly. I was gonna rewatch some, but I realized maybe some of the comics might be better considering... the reputation of the movies haha


	5. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Balea gets acquainted with the X-men-- partially. Piotr apologizes for punching them.

Their head snapped up. They were in a room with blinding lights. It was all white. They were bound to a metal chair. They shifted in the chair, head groggy as they came to fully. They looked around the room before finally, their eyes landed on a bald man in a wheelchair.

“You’re awake.” He smiled.

“And you’re creepy as hell.” They frowned.

“That’s no way to greet someone, my dear. My name is Professor Charles Xavier.” He said. 

“And why do I care?” They frowned.

He rolled towards them carefully. Being strapped down like this in a room with a guy like that… brought back terrible memories for them, causing them to thrash a little.

“Because, we need you, Balea.” He said calmly. “... Good mutants are dying, and you’re the only way we can help them.”

“Why the hell should I care about good mutants?” They growled.

“... I bet you were a good mutant at some point. You must’ve been hurt terribly to be acting this way.” He said calmly. “Tell me, why would you be involved with something as… cruel and gruesome as a gang?” He was sipping his tea. The sound pissed them off.

“Because that  **cruel and gruesome gang gave me a roof and food when no one else would.** ” They snapped. “That gang… I owe them my life.” Despite how bitter they felt, it was true. It was honest.

The beating Tracks would give them when they got back scared them.

“What if  _ I  _ did that, then?” He said. “Pardon?” They frowned up.

“What if I gave you a room, food, and a family. It’s what you want, no?” He said.

“Are you… are you fucking  _ bribing me? _ With love???” Their face twisted in disgust.

“I prefer the word negotiate, but yes, if you’d like to call it bribing then… guilty as charged.” He sipped again.

“.... what if I say no…?” They said softly.

“Well, according to Logan, as unpolished as you are, you’re quite the formidable opponent.” He said. “If I let you go, knowing you’d use your powers for bad… well, in short, I wouldn’t be able to sleep knowing you’re making a bad name for mutants like yourself. You’d be locked up in jail of course, for your crimes. But not before we make you help us, that is.” He raised his brow.

“... are you positive you guys are the good guys?” They scowled.

“Sometimes to do good, we have to do things others may not agree with.” He admitted.

They sighed. “.... I-If you catch them… promise me you won’t hurt them, okay?” They said softly.

“We won’t. One hundred percent-- I’m a man of my word.” Xavier rolled forward.

They sniffled softly. “... I-I’ll help you.” They said quietly. Xavier smiled as their shackles were undone. They rubbed their wrists, curling up in a small ball.

“Lovely. It’ll be nice having you at the school, Balea. I’ll interview you later.” He began to roll out. “Oh-- there will be someone waiting outside for you. Just come when you’re ready.” He coaxed them. They nodded before sighing, trying to calm down as he exited.

They confirmed it-- old white guys are evil. All of ‘em.

Eventually, they gathered their guts and composure and exited, Logan outside waiting for them. “Ah, you survived.” Logan joked lightly. They silently glared at them. “... I hate you.” Their voice was bitter.

“I love you too, cupcake. Now come on, I got a lot to show and tell today. I won’t like it anymore than you do, but the quicker we get this shit done, the quicker we can have dinner and go sleep.” He beckoned them to follow him. They looked around-- the size of this place was fucking  _ amazing.  _ A whole  _ manor.  _

As they looked around at the smooth, polished oak, they saw the various mutants walking around, associating with each other. They saw the blue-eyed boy again in the living room, talking to the blonde. They caught each other’s eyes before he looked away, flustered, his freckled cheeks pink. They took note of that as they continued to follow Logan. 

Once they got their tour, they were taken to the dining room and were given a small, hot meal. They ate gladly, Logan beside them just so they wouldn’t be lonely. He’d feel kinda bad then. 

“So, where you from?” He asked.

They stayed quiet as they chowed down. Logan felt like he wouldn’t get an answer so instead, he just stayed quiet himself until finally they spoke up.

“Rocheschur’--” They said, mouth filled with food.

“Nice. What brings you down here?” He asked.

“They put me down here after some shit went down just outside the island.” They muttered. He sat there quietly. “What kinda shit?” He asked.

“Ever heard of Jacob McComrick?” They asked.

“Yeah?”

“Heard from him in a while?” They asked.

“... n-no?” Logan’s brow furrowed, and he was left disturbed when they didn’t add anything else. 

When they finished, Logan lead them to Xavier’s office and closed the door behind them. He began to record as they sat down, pressing a red button on a tape recorder. They snickered.

“What year is it, 1938?” They asked. “I’m afraid not, my dear. But tell me about yourself. Your hobbies… your likes and dislikes…” He suggested. They sighed, almost annoyed.

“My name is Balea McComrick. I’m really into music n’ stuff. And art sometimes. I like sushi, my favorite instrument is the piano, and I also like hiking.” They started. He nodded quietly. “Why did you end up in the place you’re in?”

“Are you kidding me?” They smirked. “My last name ring a bell? You remember McComrick? I fuckin’ killed him.” “Right, he was an anti-mutant politicist. But do you know anything about his death?” Xavier looked at them intently.

He knew it wasn’t that simple.

  
They squirmed a little. 

“Balea, it’s easier to frame yourself as the villain than it is to see someone in a bad light. It’s okay to say you hated him.” He said. “... he hurt you, after all, didn’t he?”

“... yeah.” They sighed. “... yeah he did.” They fidgeted with the button on their coat.

“What did he do to you?”

“.... he’d adopt mutant kids and uh… experiment on them. I have a regeneration ability that’s effected by salt so… he’d open me up…” They swallowed hard, looking away. Their hands were shaking now. “... h-he’d open me up and then uh… he-- he’d pour salt everywhere and… I… he’d just… dissect me and… test stuff.” Their words gradually got more breathless. Logan’s face cringed visibly. 

“How long did this go on for?”

“.... too long.” “And so…?” “He killed someone important to me so… I… I fought back and… I killed him.” They trembled. “... and that’s when you must’ve been arrested. Because according to what we could pull up regarding you, you’re supposed to be in Manhattan’s local orphanage for mutants.” He concluded.

They nodded quietly. “... I didn’t mean to kill him. I would’ve killed myself if I’d gotten the chance. I didn’t want anything to do with any of this.” They said softly.

“... and yet... You’re in Stray Kids?”

“The orphanage is just a loony bin with a ‘for kids’ label on it. The mistress neglected us half the time… so one day… the leader of the Stray Kids found me and… he gave me what they couldn’t. He gave me love and… that’s all I needed.” They swung their legs in the chair.

“Are there others like you?” Xavier asked.

“... Some, yeah. Not the same story but similar circumstances. You got kids from broken homes, kids who wanted a second chance cause they got dealt a bad card. We’re called the ‘Stray Kids’ for a reason. Each gang territory has an age group, and the oldest you can be in Stray Kids is 25. It’s… quite literally comprised of children.” They explained.

“... I see.” Xavier’s face darkened a bit. “That’s quite morbid. What happens when you get too old?”

“You gotta move somewhere else. You’ll be less likely to sell if you’re not as young as your customers. You just look like a weird junkie then. You’ll be better suited in the other three territories.” They said.

“And where were you going to go when you reached 25?” He asked.

They stayed silent for a long while.

“... I… I dunno.” They said. Tears slowly rolled down their face. Xavier pushed a tissue box towards them. “You don’t know?”

“... I can’t die, so dying is out of the question. Um… I can’t… I just don’t have good luck. I have shitty luck. I’d prolly find some hole to crawl into and disappear.” They chuckled breathlessly. 

“... well, it’s not a hole, but you can stay here and live your life out in peace.” He smiled softly at her. They looked at him warily with their teary eyes before wiping at them.

Maybe he wasn’t  _ that  _ evil. 

“Logan will show you to your room. Your responsible for keeping it clean. There’s a uniform in your room as well. We’ll design your costume as we get to know you better. Tomorrow we’ll be looking at all your powers, and you’ll be helping us draw up a plan for our plan of action.” He said. They did a half bow as they walked out. Logan followed them quietly, looking at them. 

He lead them to their room. Before they closed the door though, he stopped them. “... look, I know it ain’t much. I was probably twice as angry as you were when I first came here. But… it’s not as bad as it seems. You ain’t had a family before but… You’ve got one now. Stray Kids wasn’t your family.

We are.”

Balea looked at him quietly before nodding, trying not to cry. They closed the door and curled up on the bed. They cried softly to themself.

They were such a disappointment. 

They stayed like that for what seemed like hours before there was a knock at the door. They opened it…

It was the metal boy! Piotr?

“H-hi?” They sniffled. “Ah-- was I… harming? No no-- interrupting!” He corrected himself. “No, you’re fine. What’s up?” They asked.

“I-I want to apologize!” He stammered, fidgeting with his pajama button.

“... apologize?”

“For punch!”

That was right. He did punch them, didn’t he!

“It’s fine. It’s better than stabbing me or breaking my neck.” They shrugged, a soft smile on their face. His face got pink again.

“Um! You are! Very pretty!” He started. They snickered. “T-thank you???” “... please stay with us. You’ll be safer.” He calmed down, getting a grasp on his words.

They paused for a second.

“.... did you think I’d escape?” They said.

“... It didn’t seem unlikely.” He looked away a bit. “... Wade said he would not have blamed you.”

They nodded quietly, rocking on their heels.

“But! But. Please stay! Be my friend! We will be good guys together!” He smiled triumphantly like he did something there.

That made them giggle softly. “Sure, Pete. I’ll stay. We can be friends. No hard feelings.” They pat his shoulder. He smiled and pat their head.

  
“Great! I’ll see you in the morning, buddy!” He walked off, giving them a thumbs up. They giggled a little more.

“See you in the morning, pal.” They waved at him, feeling a bit better having talked to the awkward boy. They felt up to a shower now, and once done, they curled up in bed and closed their eyes.

They forgot about the Stray Kids and the horrors of the world for just a night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhh-- more chapters =w=
> 
> This one made me nervous to write. I didn't wanna write Xavier as a total bad guy! But I know he isn't perfect either.
> 
> There's not much to say here, aside from the fact it was fun to write Piotr like this!


End file.
